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It’s hard to conceive, now, of the time when film production and visual effects were an American concern. Not much over a decade ago the majority of big blockbusters shot in and around LA, and effects houses in Malibu or the Presidio gave them their visual oomph. But things have swung so fast and so decidedly towards the UK that it now feels almost quaint to see a film made in the US. Next year’s biggest films – Avengers, Star Wars, Bond, Mission: Impossible – are all based here in Blighty, and more are queuing behind them.

You’ve been talking about it, your friends have been talking about it, your friends’ friends have been talking about it, hell I even heard the milkman talking about it the other day, and now the date is finally here. That’s right, it’s time for you to start preparing for the VFX Festival 2015.

If you’re in the business of creative careers, then it’s likely you’ll be aware of Creative Skillset, an organisation that aims to plug skills gaps, identify funding needs, and train, develop and nurture people within creative industries.

It wasn't that long ago that real time global illumination was the stuff of science fiction, now it’s running in real time and can even be used on high end mobile devices in Unity 5, as it’s adopted the technology from middleware developer Enlighten.

You may have read that our main man Ash Miles was invited to the private cast and crew screening of Guardians of the Galaxy last weekend, and went along with a number of Escape graduates from MPC who worked on the project. His blog about it got us so excited that we had to get in touch with Adam Dewhirst, escapee and advisory board member who happened to be Framestore's Lead Modeller on the film, to ask a few questions, he was careful not to discuss any spoilers with us so read all about the project below in peace, and discover what it’s like to work on what is soon to be a truly iconic motion picture.

Those of you who are fans of the cult TV show ‘The Mighty Boosh’ will have a kind of insta-appreciation for this new independent game ‘Hohokum’, which pays homage to the semi-fantastical comedy in the name of its main character ‘The Long Mover’.

This year’s CG Student Awards competition has just launched and they are now taking entries. As big supporters of this competition we’re delighted to see it back for another year, and it’s looking bigger and better than ever. Dedicated to students studying for careers in Next-Gen Games and VFX / Animation industries, this competition is a great opportunity for students and alumni to showcase their work to industry experts, offering a little helping hand up the VFX career ladder.

The original Alien is an incredible film. Arguably the granddaddy of space horror, it took the 70's corporation paranoia into the black, littered flawed and earnest characters throughout a floating factory and gave birth - quite literally - to one of the most terrifying creatures in cinema history.

You may have been swept up by the recent craze that is Flappy Bird, and if this really is the case, I’m glad this is a one way interaction, because I’m one of those people who was able to decidedly detest the game before I even got a chance to play it. I have had it up to my wits end hearing about your latest time consuming app-addictions, and I am ecstatic about the following news…

Honestly, I was so busy driving over mountains on a motorbike to chase planes crashing into deserts in GTA V that I was barely even paying attention to Valve's triple announcements last week. They're making a new PC or something? I didn't care, there were heists to be having! Then this week, as I tried to play online, I received the same message as the other 10 million trying to get on...

From it's humble beginnings as a top down shooter on MS-DOS, GTA has risen to become a flagship title of every generation of video gaming, consistently getting bigger and better with each iteration. GTA 3 was the definitive demonstration of what the PS2 was capable of. GTA IV took everything we loved and gave us more for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and incorporated outstanding multiplayer.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - the role of an artist is a complex and often challenging one. Every artist, no matter what stage you’re at in your career, will struggle with diminishing motivation and inspiration. It’s incredibly easy to slip into this state as we work ourselves into the ground, letting the pot of ideas run empty. But you are not alone! I know this because last week I spent three days at Reasons to be Creative in Brighton and was surrounded by artists and developers from across the creative industries, all looking for a fix of something that would get their creative juices flowing…

Here at Escape Studios we’re no strangers to European VFX enthusiasts. We have people come through our doors from all over the globe, and that’s why we love events like this, events that further confirm that the art of VFX is an international language.

The Trojan Horse is a Unicorn Festival is a premier event for producers, animators game developers concept artists and 3D generalists, and is taking place in Troi Portugal from the 18th to the 21st of September.

Who doesn’t love a bit of nostalgia? With the aid of some top notch Technology - this project is sure to relight the fire of a whole generation of gamers who first took to their Sega MEGADRIVE to play the household favourite, 'Paperboy'.

I'll admit I don't play video games, but I do thoroughly enjoy seeing the environments that they create. I came across this site that highlights some beautiful game worlds, assembled by ultrabrilliant.

The Last of Us is an action-adventure survival horror video game which gives us a different look at a post-apocalyptic world. Here is a great series of concept work from the game and what strikes me is the beautiful lighting and attractive quality given to this ‘end of civilization’ setting.